Island



`ELISHA O. POTTER, OF NORTH TROVTDENOE, RHODE ISLAND.

` Letters Patat No. 63,939, dated April 16, 1866.

APPARATUS FOR GUIDING CLOTH.

@te tlgehiile internat in im tipa ietters utut amt matting @mit nf tlgam.

To ALL wHoM 1r MAY ooNcEnN:

Beit known that I, ELISHA O. POTTER, of North Providence, in the countyof Providence, and State of Rhode Island, have invented a new and usefulMachine or Apparatus for Guiding Cloth or other material by the selvedgeedge during its delivery to other machinery; and I do hereby declarethat the following specification, taken in connection with vthe drawingsmaking a part of the same, is a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof.

Figure l is a side elevation.

Figure 2 is a plan. g

Figures 3, 4, and 5 are detached parts to be referred to. Y

The apparatus herein described is applicable to all casos Where rolls ofcloth, paper, or similar material are to be presented to a machine forsome operation to be performed thereon, and where it is desirable thatthe same shall be delivered with the least possible deviation from astraight line of travel. The importance of some mechanical `means forsuch object is daily experienced, as` for instance in the use ofmachines for printing calicees or' paper hangings in different colors,where the perfection of the pattern depends upon the accuracy with whichthe subsequent colors are laid on with reference to the figure which hasalready been printed.

The principle upon which the apparatus acts is to shift the position ofthe roll which is being unwound longitudinally whenever the selvedgeedge is travelling otherwise than in a straight line, and thus correctthe error which otherwise would follow.

In the accompanying drawings, A represents the beam upon which the clothor other material is wound. B B are two rollers placed side by side,under both of which the cloth is carried, and which are arranged inbearings located at a sulciently low point in the sides of the frametocause` the selvedge edge of the cloth between the two rollers to passnear to the eptremity of the pendulum presently to be described. C C areother sets of rollers, over the first of which the cloth passes, thencearound the larger roller C', and thence over the second of the rollers CC; and there may be also other sets which can be used to support theclothas it is delivered to the printing or other -machine with which theapparatus is connected. We will suppose now that the roll of cloth orpaper is being unwound from the cloth-beam A. In addition to thecapacity which the beam has of turning in its bearings, it can also bemoved longitudinally while it is so revolving upon its axis. For thispurpose its outer bearing (not shown) is sufficiently long to beaccommodated to any change of position longitudinally which may be givento it within the limits of such motion, which the distance of thebearings from each other upon the frame will allow. The inner bearinghas a score, a, turned in it, which rests in a yoke, b, attached to andforming a part of a sliding carriage,l D, fitted to Work in guides c c.To this carriage is attached a rack, d, with which rack the toothedpinion E is tte'd to engage, (fig.) It is quite obviousv that whenevermotion is given to such pinion, the cloth-beam A will be made to moveendwise toward the one side or the other of the machine, depending uponthe direction in' which such pinion is turnedf' The position of thecloth-beam is governed by the selvedge edge of the cloth as it travels,in the following manner: E is a toothed wheel mounted upon ashaft, E,which is arranged at right angles with the axis of the cloth-beam. Oneend of its shaft is accommodated with a bearing, e, affixed to the sideframe of the machine, and the other end may be connected by a key withthe shaft of thc pinion E, which is in this instance made tubular toreceive it. Upon the shaft E, as an axle, is placed the bell-crankshaped piece F, iig. 4, the horizontal arm of which is appro riatelconnected D a shackle-bar, F', fi l with a crank or eccentric u on theshaft G, and to which shaft a P Y y g i P constant rotary motion is tobe given bymeans of a belt passing around a pulley keyed upon suchshaft, or in any convenient way. The end of the perpendicular arm of thebell-crank piece F sustains two pawls y g, arranged to work inopposition to each other, and by their forward thrust, when permittedtoengage with the teeth of the wheel E", give an intermittent motion toit, first in one direction and then in the other. It is not intended,however, that either of these pawls shall, except at the timos when theposition of the cloth-beam is to be changed, he permitted to act uponthe wheel E', neither is it intended that both pawls shall be capable ofacting at the same time; but while the action of both may be suspended,the action of one always is suspended, while the other is free to beengaged. The mechanism by which the pawls gg are controlled and the lineof travel of the selvedge of the cloth, papcr,or other material made togovern the position of the beam which is being uni-oiled, is as follows:H, fig. 3, is an irregular-shaped metallic disk placed upon the shaft E,upon which it can be freely rocked. A portion of its edge from c to y isthe are of a true circle described from thc axis upon which the diskturns, and with a radins equal to that of the toothed wheel E', orsuilicient to enable, projecting pins upon the respective pawls to ridethereon and raise the acting faces ofthe pawls clear of the teeth of thewheel E', when such disk is adjusted in position to effectthat' result.Referring to iig. 3 it will be seen in what manner the said disk plate His operated so -as to't-hrow one or both of the pawls g g out of gear. Iis a bent lever pivotcd rto the. frame of the machine at L; its lowerarm hangs so that the soli/edge edge of the cloth will determine itsposition, its other arm being heavier, so as to give a constant tendencyto the lower arin to bear against such selvedge. The extremity of theupper arm is forked, as shown, and embraces a stud-pin set in the sideof the disk plate H, and for the purpose of embracing the shaft E it isformed with a loop. z', as shown. It is quite evident that as thependulum arm of the bent lever is vibrated the disk plate will be rockedupon its axis, so as to free one or the other of the pawls g, but solong as it hangs perpendicularly both vpawls will be out of gear. Now asthe cloth or other material is passing along, if it happens that ittravels in aline other than that one which is parallel te the side ofthe frame, owing to the roll being corkscrew wound, the said pendulumarm will follow such selvedge, whereupon one or thc other of the pawlswill be brought into action and the cloth-beam will be carried nearer tothe one side or the other of the frame in compensation of suchirregularity of travel.

-So long as the material is being unweund properly the penduluinwillhang plumb, and neither pawl will act'to shift the position of the beam.I have represented the shaft of the pinion and the shaft'of the wheel Eas connectedltogether In such ease it will be necessary to have the rackso short that when the beam has reached its extreme limitv of movementin either direction, the rack will be clear of the teeth of the pinionto prevent breakages, but it will be better to operate the pinion-shaftby the friction of the end of the shaft E' against the end of thesleeve, into which the pinion-shaft is framed, the degree of which canbe readily regulated by enabling said pinion-shaft and sleeve to moveendwise in its bearings, and by causing it to be pressed against the endof the shaft E by a weight acting through a lever to maintain the two incontact, or by a spring. By this arrangement, while the friction will besuiiic'ient to effect the movement of the cloth-beam, no injury willensue in case the beam has brought up against'tlie-fraine before thepawl has ceased to operate.

I do not mean to limit myself to the precise construction andarrangementof the several parts as described,

but mean to include all mere formal variations performing the same modeof operation by equivalent means.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatent,'is-

1. In an apparatus for guiding cloth, paper, or other like materialduring its delivery to other machinery, the combination of a beamcapable of an eudwise movement with the selvedge edge of the material asit is being unrolled, in the manner substantially as described for thepurposes specified.

2. The combination, in an apparatus for the above-declared purpose, ofthe following instrumentalities: a beam capable of an endwise movement,a rack and pinion de, and a double pawl and ratchet gear E gg, or theequivalents thereof, substantially as described.

'3. IThe combination, in an apparatus for the above-declared purpose, ofthe following instrumentalities: a mechanism for imparting an endwisemovement to the cloth-beam as above described, a disk plate H, andvibrating bent lever I, or the equivalents for putting into action orsuspending the operation of the mechanism for the shifting of theposition ofthe beam substantially as described.

ELISHA O. POTTER.

Witnesses:

W. B. VINCENT, W. W. RICHARD.

